The New Nation - Internet Edition

Tapan Chakraborty, Barisal

Many river routes including important ones of Barisal division and southern zone of the country may have to be closed to navigation after the rainy season due to lack of dredging and siltation.

According to statistics given by BIWTA Port Officer Rafiqul Islam two dredgers are in operation in this Zone out of seven dredgers owned by BIWTA. Rafiqul Islam and Port Officer, while talking to this newsman further said that in the annual budget for development of communication throughout the country only 0.5 percent money are allotted for development of river routes while 83% money are spent for development of roads and highways and the rest 15 and half percent for railways. This meagre amount is never enough for maintaining such huge river routes.

According to statistics available BITWA maintains 6000 kilometres of river routes in the rainy season and 3800 kilometres in dry season. About 50 percent of their river routes are situated in southern zone of the country but only one-sixth of dredging work is done in the southern zone of the country.

Bamnirchar channel, an important part of river route from Dhaka to Barisal near Mehendiganj, has lost navigability due to siltation and will pose a serious threat to navigation in the coming dry season. In last 5 years 29.63 cubic lakhs of metres of earth have been cut by dredgers in the southern zone of the country while the amount in the whole country is 180.81 lakhs of cubic metres of earth.

Char lands are developing in the midst of rivers posing serious threat to river traffic on both Dhaka-Barisal and Barisal-Khulna routes. Barisal is the mid point of Dhaka. Khulna river route which is a extremely important one for the country and passes through famous 'Gab Khan Channel' which requires immediate and urgent dredging. Loss of navigability in Barisal Division may soon become a very big problem.